Janie is married to a man when she is 16, because her grandmother, a former slave, wants to ensure a good life for her. Janie is miserable. To her there must be love in a marriage and she sets into the marriage waiting for love to happen. When she meets Joe one day she decides to run away with him, being struck by his big dreams and certainty of good things in life.
They settle down in Eatonwille, an all black town, and Joe quickly becomes the mayor and creates a good life for Janie. Janie however doesn’t see it so. While Joe gives her plenty of material wealth and status she is hindered in self expression by him – often left at home and often shushed from conversation. When Joe falls ill he refuses to let Janie see him, convinced that she has poisened him. Janie figures he might die and so she visits him anyway – one last time. She tells him, honestly, that he never knew her. She is sorry. When he dies she is relieved.
She spends time in mourning, dressed in black, but she is mourning because it is expected of her. She has many suitors, mostly because she is well-off since Joe’s death. That’s when she meets Tea Cake. Tea Cake makes her laugh and takes her along for new activities.
“Thank yuh, ma’am, but don’t say you’se ole. You’se uh lil girl baby all de time. God made it so you spent yo’ ole age first wid somebody else, and saved up yo’ young girl days to spend wid me.”
This is really true for the theme of the book. It is about self-discovery for Janie, who early on has her free will stripped from her in order to live a secure life. It is a story about loving people for who they are and the good things they give you. While Tea Cake is much poorer than Janie she still lets him take care of her, she puts her trust in him and he in turn takes her on adventures.
It is a story of awakening, of freeing oneself from oppression, of construction of the self – even if is through another person, by letting go.
I think this is the most lyrically beautiful book I have ever read. The prose is poetry.
You are absolutely right – I should definitely have mentioned this! This book blew me away simply by the first sentence. It was an amazing read, from start to finish.
Required reading of Zora Neale Hurston may be one of the few gifts a Florida public education gave me. So glad that you enjoyed it, this is simply one of my favorite books. The language is delicious and evocative and the research and work Hurston put in are simply astounding.